Dynamic Operation Adjustment in Wireless Power Transfer System

ABSTRACT

A wireless power transfer system is provided having a wireless transmission system with an input to receive input power from an input power source, a transmission antenna configured to couple with a receiver antenna associated with a wireless receiver system in a peripheral device, and a transmission controller configured to generate AC wireless signals including wireless power signals and wireless data signals. The transmission controller is further configured to derive a coupling factor based on coupling data sent from the wireless receiver system to the wireless transmission system, generate an update frequency based on the derived coupling factor, and transmit the update frequency to the wireless receiver system in the peripheral device, whereby the peripheral device provides coupling data to the wireless transmission system based on the update frequency.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of, and claims priority to, U.S.Non-Provisional application Ser. No. 17/354,522, filed on Jun. 22, 2021,and entitled “DYNAMIC OPERATION ADJUSTMENT IN WIRELESS POWER TRANSFERSYSTEM,” which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure generally relates to systems and methods forwireless transfer of electrical power and/or electrical data signals,and, more particularly, to a wireless power transfer system capable ofdynamically adjusting its operation in response to coupling with awireless power receiver associated with a peripheral device.

BACKGROUND

Wireless connection systems are used in a variety of applications forthe wireless transfer of electrical energy, electrical power,electromagnetic energy, electrical data signals, among other knownwirelessly transmittable signals. Such systems often use inductiveand/or resonant inductive wireless power transfer, which occurs whenmagnetic fields created by a transmitting element induce an electricfield and, hence, an electric current, in a receiving element. Thesetransmitting and receiving elements will often take the form of coiledwires and/or antennas.

Transmission of one or more of electrical energy, electrical power,electromagnetic energy and/or electronic data signals from one of suchcoiled antennas to another, generally, is executed at an operatingfrequency and/or over an operating frequency range. The operatingfrequency may be selected for a variety of reasons, such as, but notlimited to, power transfer characteristics, power level characteristics,self-resonant frequency restraints, design requirements, adherence tostandards bodies' required characteristics (e.g. electromagneticinterference (EMI) requirements, specific absorption rate (SAR)requirements, among other things), bill of materials (BOM), and/or formfactor constraints, among other things. It is to be noted that,“self-resonating frequency,” as known to those having skill in the art,generally refers to the resonant frequency of a passive component (e.g.,an inductor) due to the parasitic characteristics of the component.

One or more endpoints of a system for wireless power and data transfermay be in motion during ordinary use. During wireless power and datatransfer within such a system, the coupling between the transmitter andreceiver antennae may degrade, resulting not only in power loss, butalso data loss. Examples of such systems include wirelessly chargedperipherals such as pointers, mice, sensors and so on.

SUMMARY

In some example applications for wireless power transfer, it is desiredto power and/or charge an electronic device, such as a peripheral devicevia a use surface such as a mouse pad or other nearby element. Althoughsuch charging has been attempted in various systems, such systems tendto manage charging transmission power poorly, leading to power waste andexcess heat generation. However, using the systems, methods, andapparatus disclosed herein may allow for much more efficient operationand greater device longevity by managing power based on coupling,thereby providing sufficient power without losing coupling or wastingexcess power. In particular, dynamically changing the frequency ofcoupling change data from the peripheral receiver system, based onperipheral device movement, enables the wireless transmitter system tooptimize transmission power in real-time. This ability is especiallyvaluable in circumstances that entail very frequent relative movement ofthe peripheral device, because in the absence of such frequent updates,the transmitter system may be required to operate at a highertransmission power than is appropriate even in highly coupledconfigurations in order to ensure sufficient power transmission at theextremes of the movement range. This manner of operation may not onlywaste electrical power but also may overwork components such as diodes,wherein that wasted energy is converted to heat. This in turn may causeoperation interruptions due to exceeding thermal limits and/or may causepremature thermal wear in the affected system components.

In accordance with one aspect of the disclosure, a wireless powertransfer system is disclosed. The system includes a wirelesstransmission system having an input to receive input power from an inputpower source, a transmission antenna configured to couple with areceiver antenna associated with a wireless receiver system in aperipheral device, and a transmission controller configured to generateAC wireless signals based, at least in part, on the input power, the ACwireless signals including wireless power signals and wireless datasignals. The transmission controller is further configured to transmitsuch AC wireless signals to the receiver antenna via the transmissionantenna, to derive a coupling factor for such transmissions based oncoupling data sent from the wireless receiver system to the wirelesstransmission system, to generate an update frequency based on thederived coupling factor, and to transmit the update frequency to thewireless receiver system in the peripheral device, whereby theperipheral device provides coupling data to the wireless transmissionsystem based on the update frequency.

In a refinement, the peripheral device includes one or more of acomputer input device, a mouse, a keyboard, a tablet computer, a mobiledevice, an audio device, a headset, headphones, earbuds, a remotecontrol, a recording device, a conference telephonic device, amicrophone, a gaming controller, a camera, a stylus, electronic eyewear,or combinations thereof.

In a further refinement the wireless transmission system is configuredto directly power the peripheral device, and in an alternate refinementthe wireless transmission system is configured to provide electricalpower to a load of an electronic device operatively associated with thewireless receiver system, wherein the load is an electrical energystorage device of the peripheral device.

In yet another refinement, the transmission controller is furtherconfigured to provide driving signals for driving the transmissionantenna, and the wireless power transfer system further includes a powerconditioning system configured to receive the driving signals andgenerate the AC wireless signals based, at least in part, on the drivingsignal.

In another refinement, the wireless power transfer system furtherincludes a demodulation circuit configured to receive communicationssignals from the wireless receiver system and decode the communicationssignals by determining a rate of change in electrical characteristics ofthe communications signals.

In an additional refinement, the transmission antenna is configured tooperate based on an operating frequency of about 6.78 MHz.

Moreover, in another refinement, the transmission controller isconfigured to generate the update frequency based on the derivedcoupling factor by mapping the derived coupling factor to the updatefrequency based on a predetermined map.

In accordance with another aspect of the disclosure, a method ofwireless power transfer between a wireless transmission system having atransmission antenna and a peripheral device with a wireless receiversystem having a receiving antenna is disclosed. AC wireless signals aregenerated to include wireless power signals and wireless data signals.The method further includes transmitting the AC wireless signals to thereceiver antenna via the transmission antenna to provide power and datato the peripheral device, receiving coupling data at the wirelesstransmission system from the wireless receiver system via thetransmission antenna and the receiving antenna, deriving a couplingfactor based on the coupling data, generating an update frequency basedon the derived coupling factor, and transmitting the update frequencyfrom the wireless transmission system to the wireless receiver systemvia the transmission antenna and the receiving antenna, whereby theperipheral device provides coupling data to the wireless transmissionsystem based on the update frequency.

In a refinement, the peripheral device includes one or more of acomputer input device, a mouse, a keyboard, a tablet computer, a mobiledevice, an audio device, a headset, headphones, earbuds, a remotecontrol, a recording device, a conference telephonic device, amicrophone, a gaming controller, a camera, a stylus, electronic eyewear,or combinations thereof.

In another refinement, the AC wireless signals directly power theperipheral device and in an alternative refinement, the AC wirelesssignals provide electrical power to a load of an electronic deviceoperatively associated with the wireless receiver system, wherein theload is an electrical energy storage device of the peripheral device.

In yet another refinement, generating AC wireless signals furthercomprises generating driving signals for driving the transmissionantenna, and conditioning the driving signals to generate the ACwireless signals based, at least in part, on the driving signal.

Moreover, another refinement provides that generating the AC wirelesssignals further comprises encoding the wireless data signals in the ACwireless signals as modulations in the AC wireless signals.

In a further refinement, the transmission antenna is configured tooperate based on an operating frequency of about 6.78 MHz.

In a refinement, generating an update frequency based on the derivedcoupling factor further comprises mapping the derived coupling factor tothe update frequency based on a predetermined map.

In accordance with another aspect of the disclosure a wireless powertransfer system is provided having a wireless receiver system in aperipheral device, the wireless receiver system being configured towirelessly transmit data signals via inductive coupling, the first datasignals including coupling data associated with the inductive coupling,and the data signals being transmitted at a requested frequency. Thewireless power transfer system also includes a wireless transmissionsystem in a surface supporting the peripheral device, configured toreceive the first data signals including coupling data associated withthe inductive coupling and transmit power and second data signals to thewireless receiver system via the inductive coupling, derive a couplingfactor associated with the inductive coupling based on the first datasignals, generate an update frequency based on the derived couplingfactor, and transmit the update frequency to the wireless receiversystem to modify the requested frequency.

In a refinement, the wireless receiver system is configured to use thetransmitted power to either directly power the peripheral device orprovide power to an electrical energy storage device of the peripheraldevice.

In a further refinement, the wireless transmission system is configuredto operate at an operating frequency of about 6.78 MHz.

In yet another refinement, the wireless transmission system isconfigured to generate the update frequency based on the derivedcoupling factor by mapping the derived coupling factor to the updatefrequency based on a predetermined map.

These and other aspects and features of the present disclosure will bebetter understood when read in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a system for wirelesslytransferring one or more of electrical energy, electrical power signals,electrical power, electromagnetic energy, electronic data, andcombinations thereof, in accordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating components of the wirelesstransmission system and wireless receiver system of FIG. 1 in accordancewith the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating components of a powerconditioning system in accordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating components of a sensing systemfor transmission control in accordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram for an example low pass filter of the sensingsystem of FIG. 4 , in accordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating components of a demodulationcircuit in accordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 7A is a cross-sectional side view of a peripheral device andsupporting charging surface in accordance with the present disclosureshowing a first relationship between the peripheral device and thesupporting charging surface.

FIG. 7B is a cross-sectional side view of a peripheral device andsupporting charging surface in accordance with the present disclosureshowing a second relationship between the peripheral device and thesupporting charging surface.

FIG. 8 is an update frequency plot mapping update frequencies tocoupling factors in accordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 is a flow chart showing a process of update frequencymodification in accordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 is a perspective top view of the peripheral device andsupporting charging surface in accordance with the present disclosure,showing a location of the peripheral device relative to a charging coil.

FIG. 11 is a top view of a non-limiting, exemplary antenna, for use asone or both of a transmission antenna and a receiver antenna, inaccordance with the present disclosure.

While the following detailed description will be given with respect tocertain illustrative embodiments, it should be understood that thedrawings are not necessarily to scale and the disclosed embodiments aresometimes illustrated diagrammatically and in partial views. Inaddition, in certain instances, details which are not necessary for anunderstanding of the disclosed subject matter or which render otherdetails too difficult to perceive may have been omitted. It shouldtherefore be understood that this disclosure is not limited to theparticular embodiments disclosed and illustrated herein, but rather to afair reading of the entire disclosure and claims, as well as anyequivalents thereto. Additional, different, or fewer components andmethods may be included in the systems and methods.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth byway of examples in order to provide a thorough understanding of therelevant teachings. However, it should be apparent to those skilled inthe art that the present teachings may be practiced without suchdetails. In other instances, well known methods, procedures, components,and/or circuitry have been described at a relatively high-level, withoutdetail, in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring aspects of the presentteachings.

Referring now to the drawings and with specific reference to FIG. 1 , awireless power transfer system 10 is illustrated. The wireless powertransfer system 10 provides for the wireless transmission of electricalsignals, such as, but not limited to, electrical energy, electricalpower, electrical power signals, electromagnetic energy, andelectronically transmittable data (“electronic data”). As used herein,the term “electrical power signal” refers to an electrical signaltransmitted specifically to provide meaningful electrical energy forcharging and/or directly powering a load, whereas the term “electronicdata signal” refers to an electrical signal that is utilized to conveydata across a medium.

The wireless power transfer system 10 provides for the wirelesstransmission of electrical signals via near field magnetic coupling. Asshown in the embodiment of FIG. 1 , the wireless power transfer system10 includes one or more wireless transmission systems 20 and one or morewireless receiver systems 30. A wireless receiver system 30 isconfigured to receive electrical signals from, at least, a wirelesstransmission system 20.

As illustrated, the wireless transmission system 20 and wirelessreceiver system 30 may be configured to transmit electrical signalsacross, at least, a separation distance or gap 17. A separation distanceor gap, such as the gap 17, in the context of a wireless power transfersystem, such as the system 10, does not include a physical connection,such as a wired connection. There may be intermediary objects located ina separation distance or gap, such as, but not limited to, air, acounter top, a casing for an electronic device, a plastic filament, aninsulator, a mechanical wall, among other things; however, there is nophysical, electrical connection at such a separation distance or gap.

Thus, the combination of a wireless transmission system 20 and wirelessreceiver system 30 creates an electrical connection without the need fora physical connection. As used herein, the term “electrical connection”refers to any facilitation of a transfer of an electrical current,voltage, and/or power from a first location, device, component, and/orsource to a second location, device, component, and/or destination. An“electrical connection” may be a physical connection, such as, but notlimited to, a wire, a trace, a via, among other physical electricalconnections, connecting a first location, device, component, and/orsource to a second location, device, component, and/or destination.Additionally or alternatively, an “electrical connection” may be awireless power and/or data transfer, such as, but not limited to,magnetic, electromagnetic, resonant, and/or inductive field, among otherwireless power and/or data transfers, connecting a first location,device, component, and/or source to a second location, device,component, and/or destination.

While FIG. 1 may depict wireless power signals and wireless data signalstransferring only from one antenna (e.g., transmission antenna 21) toanother antenna (e.g., receiver antenna 31), it is certainly possiblethat a transmitting antenna 21 may transfer electrical signals and/orcouple with one or more other antennas.

In some cases, the gap 17 may also be referenced as a “Z-Distance,”because, if one considers each of antenna 21 and antenna 31 to bedisposed substantially along respective common X-Y planes, then thedistance separating the antennas 21, 31 is the gap in a “Z” or “depth”direction. However, flexible and/or non-planar coils are certainlycontemplated by embodiments of the present disclosure and, thus, it iscontemplated that the gap 17 may not be uniform, across an envelope ofconnection distances between the antennas 21, 31. It is contemplatedthat various tunings, configurations, and/or other parameters may alterthe possible maximum distance of the gap 17, such that electricaltransmission from the wireless transmission system 20 to the wirelessreceiver system 30 remains possible.

The wireless power transfer system 10 operates when the wirelesstransmission system 20 and the wireless receiver system 30 are coupled.As used herein, the terms “couples,” “coupled,” and “coupling” generallyrefer to magnetic field coupling, which occurs when a transmitter and/orany components thereof and a receiver and/or any components thereof arecoupled to each other through a magnetic field. Such coupling mayinclude coupling, represented by a coupling coefficient (k); that is atleast sufficient for an induced electrical power signal, from atransmitter, to be harnessed by a receiver. Coupling of the wirelesstransmission system 20 and the wireless receiver system 30, in thesystem 10, may be represented by a resonant coupling coefficient of thesystem 10 and, for the purposes of wireless power transfer, the couplingcoefficient for the system 10 may be in the range of about 0.01 and 0.9.The coupling coefficient may change with changes in either theZ-Distance or the vertical registration of the antennae 21, 31.

As illustrated in FIG. 3 , at least the wireless transmission system 20is associated with an input power source 12. The input power source 12may be operatively associated with a host device such as a desktop orlaptop computer or other electrically operated device, circuit board,electronic assembly, dedicated charging device, or any othercontemplated electronic device. Example host devices, with which thewireless transmission system 20 may be associated include, but are notlimited to including, a device that includes an integrated circuit, aportable computing device, storage medium for electronic devices,charging apparatus for one or multiple electronic devices, dedicatedelectrical charging devices, among other contemplated electronicdevices.

The input power source 12 may be or may include one or more electricalstorage devices, such as an electrochemical cell, a battery pack, and/ora capacitor, among other storage devices. Additionally or alternatively,the input power source 12 may be any electrical input source (e.g., anyalternating current (AC) or direct current (DC) delivery port) and mayinclude connection apparatus from said electrical input source to thewireless transmission system 20 (e.g., transformers, regulators,conductive conduits, traces, wires, or equipment, goods, computer,camera, mobile phone, and/or other electrical device connection portsand/or adaptors, such as but not limited to USB ports and/or adaptors,among other contemplated electrical components).

Electrical energy received by the wireless transmission system 20 isused for at least two purposes: to provide electrical power to internalcomponents of the wireless transmission system 20 and to provideelectrical power to the transmission antenna 21. The transmissionantenna 21 is configured to wirelessly transmit the electrical signalsconditioned and modified for wireless transmission by the wirelesstransmission system 20 via near-field magnetic coupling (NFMC).Near-field magnetic coupling enables the transfer of signals wirelesslythrough magnetic induction between the transmission antenna 21 and thereceiving antenna 31 of, or associated with, the wireless receiversystem 30. Near-field magnetic coupling may be and/or be referred to as“inductive coupling,” which, as used herein, is a wireless powertransmission technique that utilizes an alternating electromagneticfield to transfer electrical energy between two antennas. Such inductivecoupling is the near field wireless transmission of magnetic energybetween two magnetically coupled coils that are tuned to resonate at asimilar frequency. Accordingly, such near-field magnetic coupling mayenable efficient wireless power transmission via resonant transmissionof confined magnetic fields. Further, such near-field magnetic couplingmay provide connection via “mutual inductance,” which, as defined hereinis the production of an electromotive force in a circuit by a change incurrent in a second circuit magnetically coupled to the first.

In one or more embodiments, the inductor coils of either thetransmission antenna 21 or the receiver antenna 31 are strategicallypositioned to facilitate reception and/or transmission of wirelesslytransferred electrical signals through near field magnetic induction. Assuch, movement of either device from that position may require retuningof the circuit operating parameters to re-optimize coupling.

Antenna operating frequencies may comprise relatively high operatingfrequency ranges, examples of which may include, but are not limited to,6.78 MHz (e.g., in accordance with the Rezence and/or Airfuel interfacestandard and/or any other proprietary interface standard operating at afrequency of 6.78 MHz), 13.56 MHz (e.g., in accordance with the NFCstandard, defined by ISO/IEC standard 18092), 27 MHz, and/or anoperating frequency of another proprietary operating mode. The operatingfrequencies of the antennas 21, 31 may be operating frequenciesdesignated by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) in theIndustrial, Scientific, and Medical (ISM) frequency bands, including notlimited to 6.78 MHz, 13.56 MHz, and 27 MHz, which are designated for usein wireless power transfer.

The transmitting antenna 21 and receiving antenna 31 of the presentdisclosure may be configured to transmit and/or receive electrical powerhaving a magnitude that ranges from about 10 milliwatts (mW) to about500 watts (W). In one or more embodiments the inductor coil of thetransmitting antenna 21 is configured to resonate at a transmittingantenna resonant frequency or within a transmitting antenna resonantfrequency band.

As known to those skilled in the art, a “resonant frequency” or“resonant frequency band” refers a frequency or frequencies whereinamplitude response of the antenna is at a relative maximum, or,additionally or alternatively, the frequency or frequency band where thecapacitive reactance has a magnitude substantially similar to themagnitude of the inductive reactance. In one or more embodiments, thetransmitting antenna resonant frequency is at a high frequency, as knownto those in the art of wireless power transfer.

The wireless receiver system 30 may be associated with at least oneperipheral device 14, wherein the peripheral device 14 may be any deviceproviding input and/or output to a computing device, that requireselectrical power for any function and/or for power storage (e.g., via abattery and/or capacitor). Additionally, the peripheral device 14 may beany peripheral device capable of receipt of electronically transmissibledata. For example, the peripheral device 14 may be, but is not limitedto being, a computer input device, a mouse, a keyboard, an audio device,a headset, headphones, earbuds, a recording device, a conferencetelephonic device, a microphone, an electronic stylus, a handheldcomputing device, a mobile device, an electronic tool, a game console, arobotic device, a wearable electronic device (e.g., an electronic watch,electronically modified glasses, altered-reality (AR) glasses, virtualreality (VR) glasses, among other things), a portable scanning device, aportable identifying device, a sporting good, an embedded sensor, anInternet of Things (IoT) sensor, IoT enabled clothing, IoT enabledrecreational equipment, a tablet computing device, a portable controldevice, a remote controller for an electronic device, a gamingcontroller, among other things.

For the purposes of illustrating the features and characteristics of thedisclosed embodiments, arrow-ended lines are utilized to illustratetransferrable and/or communicative signals and various patterns are usedto illustrate electrical signals that are intended for powertransmission and electrical signals that are intended for thetransmission of data and/or control instructions. Except as otherwiseindicated, solid lines indicate signal transmission of electrical energyover a physical and/or wireless power transfer, in the form of powersignals that are, ultimately, utilized in wireless power transmissionfrom the wireless transmission system 20 to the wireless receiver system30. Further, except as otherwise indicated, dotted lines are utilized toillustrate electronically transmittable data signals, which ultimatelymay be wirelessly transmitted from the wireless transmission system 20to the wireless receiver system 30.

While the systems and methods herein illustrate the transmission ofwirelessly transmitted energy, wireless power signals, wirelesslytransmitted power, wirelessly transmitted electromagnetic energy, and/orelectronically transmittable data, it is certainly contemplated that thesystems, methods, and apparatus disclosed herein may be utilized in thetransmission of only one signal, various combinations of two signals, ormore than two signals and, further, it is contemplated that the systems,method, and apparatus disclosed herein may be utilized for wirelesstransmission of other electrical signals in addition to or uniquely incombination with one or more of the above mentioned signals. In someexamples, the signal paths of solid or dotted lines may represent afunctional signal path, whereas, in practical application, the actualsignal is routed through additional components en route to its indicateddestination. For example, it may be indicated that a data signal routesfrom a communications apparatus to another communications apparatus;however, in practical application, the data signal may be routed throughan amplifier, then through a transmission antenna, to a receiverantenna, where, on the receiver end, the data signal is decoded by arespective communications device of the receiver.

Turning now to FIG. 2 , the wireless power transfer system 10 isillustrated as a block diagram including example sub-systems of both thewireless transmission systems 20 and the wireless receiver systems 30.The wireless transmission systems 20 may include, at least, a powerconditioning system 40, a transmission control system 26, a transmissiontuning system 24, and the transmission antenna 21. A first portion ofthe electrical energy input from the input power source 12 may beconfigured to electrically power components of the wireless transmissionsystem 20 such as, but not limited to, the transmission control system26. A second portion of the electrical energy input from the input powersource 12 is conditioned and/or modified for wireless powertransmission, to the wireless receiver system 30, via the transmissionantenna 21. Accordingly, the second portion of the input energy ismodified and/or conditioned by the power conditioning system 40. Whilenot illustrated, it is certainly contemplated that one or both of thefirst and second portions of the input electrical energy may bemodified, conditioned, altered, and/or otherwise changed prior toreceipt by the power conditioning system 40 and/or transmission controlsystem 26, by further contemplated subsystems (e.g., a voltageregulator, a current regulator, switching systems, fault systems, safetyregulators, among other things).

The wireless receiver system 30 includes, at least, the receiver antenna31, a receiver tuning and filtering system 34, a power conditioningsystem 32, a receiver control system 36, and a voltage isolation circuit70. The receiver tuning and filtering system 34 may be configured tosubstantially match the electrical impedance of the wirelesstransmission system 20. In some examples, the receiver tuning andfiltering system 34 may be configured to dynamically adjust andsubstantially match the electrical impedance of the receiver antenna 31to a characteristic impedance of the power generator or the load at adriving frequency of the transmission antenna 20.

Referring now to FIG. 3 , with continued reference to FIGS. 1 and 2 ,subcomponents and/or systems of the transmission control system 26 areillustrated. The transmission control system 26 may include a sensingsystem 50, a transmission controller 28, a communications system 29, adriver 48, and a memory 27.

The transmission controller 28 may be any electronic controller orcomputing system that includes, at least, a processor which performsoperations, executes control algorithms, stores data, retrieves data,gathers data, controls and/or provides communication with othercomponents and/or subsystems associated with the wireless transmissionsystem 20, and/or performs any other computing or controlling taskdesired. The transmission controller 28 may be a single controller ormay include more than one controller disposed to control variousfunctions and/or features of the wireless transmission system 20.Functionality of the transmission controller 28 may be implemented inhardware and/or software and may rely on one or more data maps relatingto the operation of the wireless transmission system 20. To that end,the transmission controller 28 may be operatively associated with thememory 27. The memory may include one or more of internal memory,external memory, and/or remote memory (e.g., a database and/or serveroperatively connected to the transmission controller 28 via a network,such as, but not limited to, the Internet). The internal memory and/orexternal memory may include, but are not limited to including, one ormore of a read only memory (ROM), including programmable read-onlymemory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM orsometimes but rarely labelled EROM), electrically erasable programmableread-only memory (EEPROM), random access memory (RAM), including dynamicRAM (DRAM), static RAM (SRAM), synchronous dynamic RAM (SDRAM), singledata rate synchronous dynamic RAM (SDR SDRAM), double data ratesynchronous dynamic RAM (DDR SDRAM, DDR2, DDR3, DDR4), and graphicsdouble data rate synchronous dynamic RAM (GDDR SDRAM, GDDR2, GDDR3,GDDR4, GDDR5, a flash memory, a portable memory, and the like. Suchmemory media are examples of nontransitory machine readable and/orcomputer readable memory media.

While particular elements of the transmission control system 26 areillustrated as independent components and/or circuits (e.g., the driver48, the memory 27, the communications system 29, the sensing system 50,among other contemplated elements) of the transmission control system26, such components may be integrated with the transmission controller28. In some examples, the transmission controller 28 may be anintegrated circuit configured to include functional elements of one orboth of the transmission controller 28 and the wireless transmissionsystem 20, generally.

As illustrated, the transmission controller 28 is in operativeassociation, for the purposes of data transmission, receipt, and/orcommunication, with, at least, the memory 27, the communications system29, the power conditioning system 40, the driver 48, and the sensingsystem 50. The driver 48 may be implemented to control, at least inpart, the operation of the power conditioning system 40. In someexamples, the driver 48 may receive instructions from the transmissioncontroller 28 to generate and/or output a generated pulse widthmodulation (PWM) signal to the power conditioning system 40. In somesuch examples, the PWM signal may be configured to drive the powerconditioning system 40 to output electrical power as an alternatingcurrent signal, having an operating frequency defined by the PWM signal.In some examples, PWM signal may be configured to generate a duty cyclefor the AC power signal output by the power conditioning system 40. Insome such examples, the duty cycle may be configured to be about 50% ofa given period of the AC power signal.

The sensing system may include one or more sensors, wherein each sensormay be operatively associated with one or more components of thewireless transmission system 20 and configured to provide informationand/or data. The term “sensor” is used in its broadest interpretation todefine one or more components operatively associated with the wirelesstransmission system 20 that operate to sense functions, conditions,electrical characteristics, operations, and/or operating characteristicsof one or more of the wireless transmission system 20, the wirelessreceiving system 30, the input power source 12, the host device 11, thetransmission antenna 21, the receiver antenna 31, along with any othercomponents and/or subcomponents thereof.

As illustrated in the embodiment of FIG. 4 , the sensing system 50 mayinclude, but is not limited to including, a thermal sensing system 52,an object sensing system 54, a receiver sensing system 56, a currentsensor 57, and/or any other sensor 58. Within these systems, there mayexist even more specific optional additional or alternative sensingsystems addressing particular sensing aspects required by anapplication, such as, but not limited to: a condition-based maintenancesensing system, a performance optimization sensing system, astate-of-charge sensing system, a temperature management sensing system,a component heating sensing system, an IoT sensing system, an energyand/or power management sensing system, an impact detection sensingsystem, an electrical status sensing system, a speed detection sensingsystem, a device health sensing system, among others. The object sensingsystem 54, may be a foreign object detection (FOD) system.

Each of the thermal sensing system 52, the object sensing system 54, thereceiver sensing system 56, the current sensor 57, and/or the othersensor 58, including the optional additional or alternative systems, areoperatively and/or communicatively connected to the transmissioncontroller 28. The thermal sensing system 52 is configured to monitorambient and/or component temperatures within the wireless transmissionsystem 20 or other elements nearby the wireless transmission system 20.The thermal sensing system 52 may be configured to detect a temperaturewithin the wireless transmission system 20 and, if the detectedtemperature exceeds a threshold temperature, the transmission controller28 prevents the wireless transmission system 20 from operating. Such athreshold temperature may be configured for safety considerations,operational considerations, efficiency considerations, and/or anycombinations thereof. In a non-limiting example, if, via input from thethermal sensing system 52, the transmission controller 28 determinesthat the temperature within the wireless transmission system 20 hasincreased from an acceptable operating temperature to an undesiredoperating temperature (e.g., in a non-limiting example, the internaltemperature increasing from about 20° Celsius (C) to about 50° C., thetransmission controller 28 prevents the operation of the wirelesstransmission system 20 and/or reduces levels of power output from thewireless transmission system 20. In some non-limiting examples, thethermal sensing system 52 may include one or more of a thermocouple, athermistor, a negative temperature coefficient (NTC) resistor, aresistance temperature detector (RTD), and/or any combinations thereof.

As depicted in FIG. 4 , the transmission sensing system 50 may includethe object sensing system 54. The object sensing system 54 may beconfigured to detect one or more of the wireless receiver system 30and/or the receiver antenna 31, thus indicating to the transmissioncontroller 28 that the receiver system 30 is proximate to the wirelesstransmission system 20. Additionally or alternatively, the objectsensing system 54 may be configured to detect presence of unwantedobjects in contact with or proximate to the wireless transmission system20. In some examples, the object sensing system 54 is configured todetect the presence of an undesired object. In some such examples, ifthe transmission controller 28, via information provided by the objectsensing system 54, detects the presence of an undesired object, then thetransmission controller 28 prevents or otherwise modifies operation ofthe wireless transmission system 20. In some examples, the objectsensing system 54 utilizes an impedance change detection scheme, inwhich the transmission controller 28 analyzes a change in electricalimpedance observed by the transmission antenna 20 against a known,acceptable electrical impedance value or range of electrical impedancevalues.

Additionally or alternatively, the object sensing system 54 may utilizea quality factor (Q) change detection scheme, in which the transmissioncontroller 28 analyzes a change from a known quality factor value orrange of quality factor values of the object being detected, such as thereceiver antenna 31. The “quality factor” or “Q” of an inductor can bedefined as (frequency (Hz)×inductance (H))/resistance (ohms), wherefrequency is the operational frequency of the circuit, inductance is theinductance output of the inductor and resistance is the combination ofthe radiative and reactive resistances that are internal to theinductor. “Quality factor,” as defined herein, is generally accepted asan index (figure of measure) that measures the efficiency of anapparatus like an antenna, a circuit, or a resonator. In some examples,the object sensing system 54 may include one or more of an opticalsensor, an electro-optical sensor, a Hall effect sensor, a proximitysensor, and/or any combinations thereof. In some examples, the qualityfactor measurements, described above, may be performed when the wirelesspower transfer system 10 is performing in band communications.

The receiver sensing system 56 is any sensor, circuit, and/orcombinations thereof configured to detect the presence of any wirelessreceiving system that may be couplable with the wireless transmissionsystem 20. In some examples, the receiver sensing system 56 and theobject sensing system 54 may be combined, may share components, and/ormay be embodied by one or more common components. In some examples, ifthe presence of any such wireless receiving system is detected, wirelesstransmission of electrical energy, electrical power, electromagneticenergy, and/or data by the wireless transmission system 20 to saidwireless receiving system is enabled. In some examples, if the presenceof a wireless receiver system is not detected, continued wirelesstransmission of electrical energy, electrical power, electromagneticenergy, and/or data is prevented from occurring. Accordingly, thereceiver sensing system 56 may include one or more sensors and/or may beoperatively associated with one or more sensors that are configured toanalyze electrical characteristics within an environment of or proximateto the wireless transmission system 20 and, based on the electricalcharacteristics, determine presence of a wireless receiver system 30.

The current sensor 57 may be any sensor configured to determineelectrical information from an electrical signal, such as a voltage or acurrent, based on a current reading at the current sensor 57. Componentsof an example current sensor 57 are further illustrated in FIG. 5 ,which is a block diagram for the current sensor 57. The current sensor57 may include a transformer 51, a rectifier 53, and/or a low passfilter 55, to process the AC wireless signals, transferred via couplingbetween the wireless receiver system 20 and wireless transmission system30, to determine or provide information to derive a current (I_(Tx)) orvoltage (V_(Tx)) at the transmission antenna 21. The transformer 51 mayreceive the AC wireless signals and either step up or step down thevoltage of the AC wireless signal, such that it can properly beprocessed by the current sensor. The rectifier 53 may receive thetransformed AC wireless signal and rectify the signal, such that anynegative remaining in the transformed AC wireless signal are eithereliminated or converted to opposite positive voltages, to generate arectified AC wireless signal. The low pass filter 55 is configured toreceive the rectified AC wireless signal and filter out AC components(e.g., the operating or carrier frequency of the AC wireless signal) ofthe rectified AC wireless signal, such that a DC voltage is output forthe current (I_(Tx)) and/or voltage (V_(Tx)) at the transmission antenna21.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram for a demodulation circuit 70 for the wirelesstransmission system 20, which is used by the wireless transmissionsystem 20 to simplify or decode components of wireless data signals ofan alternating current (AC) wireless signal, prior to transmission ofthe wireless data signal to the transmission controller 28. Thedemodulation circuit includes, at least, a slope detector 72 and acomparator 74. In some examples, the demodulation circuit 70 includes aset/reset (SR) latch 76. In some examples, the demodulation circuit 70may be an analog circuit comprised of one or more passive components(e.g., resistors, capacitors, inductors, diodes, among other passivecomponents) and/or one or more active components (e.g., operationalamplifiers, logic gates, among other active components). Alternatively,it is contemplated that the demodulation circuit 70 and some or all ofits components may be implemented as an integrated circuit (IC). Ineither an analog circuit or IC, it is contemplated that the demodulationcircuit may be external of the transmission controller 28 and isconfigured to provide information associated with wireless data signalstransmitted from the wireless receiver system 30 to the wirelesstransmission system 20.

The demodulation circuit 70 is configured to receive electricalinformation (e.g., I_(Tx), V_(Tx)) from at least one sensor (e.g., asensor of the sensing system 50), detect a change in such electricalinformation, determine if the change in the electrical information meetsor exceeds one of a rise threshold or a fall threshold. If the changeexceeds one of the rise threshold or the fall threshold, thedemodulation circuit 70 generates an alert, and, outputs a plurality ofdata alerts. Such data alerts are received by the transmitter controller28 and decoded by the transmitter controller 28 to determine thewireless data signals. In other words, the demodulation circuit 70 isconfigured to monitor the slope of an electrical signal (e.g., slope ofa voltage at the power conditioning system 32 of a wireless receiversystem 30) and output an alert if said slope exceeds a maximum slopethreshold or undershoots a minimum slope threshold.

Such slope monitoring and/or slope detection by the communicationssystem 70 is particularly useful when detecting or decoding an amplitudeshift keying (ASK) signal that encodes the wireless data signals in-bandof the wireless power signal at the operating frequency. In an ASKsignal, the wireless data signals are encoded by damping the voltage ofthe magnetic field between the wireless transmission system 20 and thewireless receiver system 30. Such damping and subsequent re-rising ofthe voltage in the field is performed based on an encoding scheme forthe wireless data signals (e.g., binary coding, Manchester coding,pulse-width modulated coding, among other known or novel coding systemsand methods). The receiver of the wireless data signals (e.g., thewireless transmission system 20) must then detect rising and fallingedges of the voltage of the field and decode said rising and fallingedges to receive the wireless data signals.

In theory, an ASK signal will rise and fall instantaneously, with noslope between the high voltage and the low voltage for ASK modulation;however, in physical reality, there is some time that passes when theASK signal transitions from the “high” voltage to the “low” voltage.Thus, the voltage or current signal sensed by the demodulation circuit70 will have a known slope or rate of change in voltage whentransitioning from the high ASK voltage to the low ASK voltage. Byconfiguring the demodulation circuit 70 to determine when an incomingslope meets, overshoots and/or undershoots such rise and fallthresholds, known for the slope when operating in the system 10, thedemodulation circuit can accurately detect rising and falling edges ofthe ASK signal.

Despite the use of slope detection to better separate data signals fromnoise or other artifacts, accurate data transmission still relies onsufficient coupling between the transmitting antenna and the receivingantenna. To this end, the inductive coupling in a wireless power anddata transmission system may be optimized by the transmitter for a givenspatial arrangement of the receiver antenna relative to the transmitterantenna. However, when the receiver antenna then moves, due to movementof the peripheral device containing the receiver antenna, the couplingbetween the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna may drop.

Degradation in coupling will decrease both power transfer and datatransfer efficiency. In the case of a very quick move of the peripheraldevice, such as may occur with a mouse having a wireless power receiver,the data transfer ability of the system can degrade more quickly thanthe transmitter's ability to communicate newly optimized couplingparameters to the peripheral device over the wireless connection. Inparticular, the transmitter may, upon detecting degradation in coupling,generate new operational parameters to account for the new positioningand send such parameters to the receiver for continued optimal powertransfer. However, if the coupling is too weak when the new parametersare sent, the receiver will not receive them and will be essentiallylost from wireless view. In such circumstances, the data connection maybe lost and the peripheral device may cease communications.

As such, it is desirable for the transmitter to be able to compensatefor movement of the receiver before there is a substantial impact onwireless data communications between the transmitter and the receiver.To this end, in an embodiment of the disclosed principles, thetransmitter is configured to determine a rate at which the couplingbetween the transmitter and receiver is changing, and to have thereceiver increase or decrease the rate or frequency at which it sendsdata to the transmitter, for the purposes of controlling power sent andreceived. For example, received voltage information and couplingparameters may be transmitted to the transmitter, for the purposes ofhaving the transmitter adjust the transmission power rate.

FIG. 7A is a simplified side view of a peripheral device 701 on asurface 703 beneath which lies a wireless power and data transmissionsystem 20 and transmitter antenna 21. The peripheral device 701 may bean exemplary host device 14, as described above. The transmitter antenna21 may be in the form of a coil extending under a substantial portion ofthe usable area of the surface 703. The peripheral device 701 may be theperipheral device 14, within which the wireless receiver system 31resides.

The peripheral device 701 includes a wireless receiver system 30, whichincludes the receiver antenna 31, and is able to move during use whilethe wireless power and data transmission system 20 and transmitterantenna 21 remain substantially fixed. In practice, the transmitterantenna 21 may not produce a uniform field, but rather a slightlyvarying field, particularly toward the extremes. Thus, in theillustrated configuration of FIG. 7A, the wireless receiver system 30and/or antenna 31 are centered above the transmitter antenna 21 andexperience a first coupling coefficient, which may be an optimalcoupling coefficient.

However, as the peripheral device 701 moves along the surface 703 duringuse, the relationship between the wireless receiver system 30 and/orreceiver antenna 31 and wireless transmitter system 20, 21 changes, asshown in FIG. 7B. In this latter configuration, the wireless receiversystem 30 and/or receiver antenna 31 may experience a lower suboptimalcoupling coefficient than that achieved in the configuration of FIG. 7Adue to variations in the field generated by the transmitter antenna 21.Nonetheless, efficient and data transfer will still be possible duringsuch movements if the wireless power and data wireless transmissionsystem 20 is able to adjust its operation to compensate, e.g., byincreasing or decreasing output power.

However, in order to adjust its operation while the peripheral device701 and its wireless receiver system 30 and/or receiver antenna 31 aremoving, the wireless power and data transmitter system 20, 21 must betimely aware of the relocation and consequent degradation in coupling.Indeed, the faster the position of the peripheral device 701 changes,the more quickly the wireless receiver system 30 and/or receiver antenna31 must become aware of the movement to adjust in time. In anembodiment, this awareness is assisted by receiving more frequentoperational updates at the wireless power and data transmitter system20, 21 from the wireless receiver system 30 and/or receiver antenna 31.

To this end, in an embodiment of the disclosed principles, potentialrates of change in coupling are mapped to respective correspondingdesired data rates from the receiver to the transmitter. Thus, forexample, if the receiver has been updating the transmitter every 500 msunder optimal coupling conditions and a rapid change towards a new,potentially differently-coupled, location is then sensed at thetransmitter, the transmitter may request more frequent updates from thereceiver, e.g., every 10 ms. However, if under the same initialconditions a slower rate of change in position of the peripheral device14 is detected, the wireless power and data transmitter system 20, 21may request slightly less frequent updates from the receiver, e.g.,every 250 ms.

It will be appreciated that the mapping between coupling rates of changeand update frequency will be specific to the operating environment ofthe transmitter and receiver. That is, some systems will have widerlateral ranges over which coupling remains sufficient for good datatransfer. For such systems, the increase in frequency with increasingrates of change may be more mild than in systems with narrower lateraloperating ranges.

Turning to FIG. 8 , an example mapping 700 between potential couplingchange rates (in units of per second) and corresponding receiver updatefrequencies (also in units of per second) is shown. As can be seen, thehigher the rate of change in coupling, the higher the frequency ofupdates requested from the receiver. While illustrated as asubstantially linear relationship between coupling change and frequencyof updates, the mapping 700 and/or said relationship may be any directrelationship (e.g., non-linear, exponential, etc.) so long as thefrequency of updates increases as the rate of change in couplingincreases.

As noted above, the coupling coefficient k may be from 0 to 1, withoptimal values being as high as 0.9. As such, a dk/dt value of 0.9/sindicates that at that rate, the coupling coefficient k will drop tozero within a second. At that anticipated rate of change, thetransmitter requests updates at a frequency of 10 per second,corresponding to an update every 100 ms. In contrast, when dk/dt is0.1/s, the corresponding frequency of updates from the receiver is only0.5/s or once every two seconds. Moreover, at an initial k of 0.9 and arate of change of 0.1/s, the receiver would be expected to remain fairlywell coupled (at a k of 0.5) until at least 4 seconds have passed.Further, at such a low rate of change, the receiver movement will likelynot remain constant at that rate and direction for 4 seconds

The mapping of rates of change in coupling to update frequency requestedmay be embodied within the system at production or may be derived byinitial calibration when the system is first used. The change incoupling can be employed at the transmitter not only to alter requestedupdate frequency, but also to automatically control the output power ofthe transmitter to smooth the voltage output at the rectifier inchanging-coupling conditions. This will in turn reduce power waste andexcess heat generation.

FIG. 9 shows a flowchart of a process 900 for transmitter operationunder changing-coupling conditions in accordance with embodiments of thedisclosed principles. Such a process 900 may be executed, performed,and/or otherwise functioned at or by the transmission controller 27. Atstage 901 of the process 900, the wireless transmission system 20wireless transmission system 20 detects the peripheral device 14, eithervia sensor detection or by detecting the inductance of the receiver coil31 within the peripheral device 14. The wireless transmission system 20then establishes a wireless connection with the peripheral device 14 forunidirectional power transfer and bidirectional data transfer at stage903.

Based on data received from the peripheral device 14, at stage 905 thewireless transmission system 20 determines the coupling coefficient kfor the coupling, and receives updates from the peripheral device 14 ata frequency associated with the coupling coefficient k. At stage 907,which may be executed upon receipt of each update from the peripheraldevice 14, the wireless transmission system 20 determines a rate ofchange (dk/dt) of the coupling coefficient k.

It is then determined at stage 909 whether the magnitude of dk/dt iswithin a predefined tolerance around zero. If so, the process 900 loopsto stage 907. However, if it is determined that the magnitude of dk/dtlies outside of the predefined tolerance around zero, the process flowsto stage 911, wherein the wireless transmission system 20 adjusts itsoperation, such as by raising output power to maintain charging and datatransfer. At stage 913, the wireless transmission system 20 determines anew update frequency by mapping dk/dt to a corresponding updatefrequency, and communicates the new update frequency to the peripheraldevice 14. The process then returns to stage 907 to await furtherchanges in coupling.

In this way, the wireless transmission system 20 may operate at a leveladequate for charging and communications without needing to continuallyoperate at its highest output. This in turn prevents wasted energy andthe damage or interruption that can be caused when wasted energy isconverted to excess heat.

Although the disclosed principles may be applied to any number ofperipheral device systems, FIG. 10 provides an example of a suitableperipheral environment 1000 within which the disclosed principles may beimplemented. FIG. 10 is a perspective top view of a wireless powertransfer system, wherein a peripheral device 14, having therein awireless receiver system such as receiver system 30, is positioned toreceive AC wireless signals from a wireless transmission system, such astransmitter system 20, within a mouse pad 1001. The vertical projection1021 of the antenna 21 associated with the transmitter system 20 withinthe mouse pad 1001 is shown in dashed outline. An area 1003 of optimalcoupling is also shown is dashed outline. The wireless transmissionsystem 20, 21 of the mouse pad 1000 is capable of functioning to poweror charge the peripheral device 14, even though the peripheral device 14and its wireless receiver system 30, 31 will generally not be in thearea 1003 of optimal coupling on the mouse pad 1001.

In the context of FIG. 10 , the techniques disclosed herein allow formuch more efficient operation and greater device longevity in thewireless transmission system of the mouse pad 1001. That is, by managingpower based on coupling, the wireless transmission system of the mousepad 1001 is able to provide sufficient power without losing couplingthrough too low of a power setting or wasting energy through too high ofa power setting. In the latter case, thermal disruption may occur andassociated thermal damage can accumulate. By dynamically changing thefrequency of coupling updates from the peripheral device 14 based onmovement of the peripheral device, the wireless transmission system ofthe mouse pad 1001 is able to quickly optimize transmission power inreal-time during movement of the peripheral device 14.

This ability is especially valuable during periods of very frequentmovement of the peripheral device 14, because in the absence of suchfrequent updates, the wireless transmission system of the mouse pad 1001would need to operate at an excessively high transmission power, even inhighly coupled configurations, just to ensure sufficient powertransmission at the extremes of the movement range. As noted,continually operating at an excess power setting not only wasteselectrical power but also overworks components such as diodes, in whichthat wasted energy is converted to heat. This in turn causes operationinterruptions due to exceeding thermal limits and causes prematurethermal wear in the affected system components.

FIG. 11 is a top view of an embodiment of an antenna 21, 31, which maybe utilized as a transmission antenna 21 or receiver antenna 31. Theantenna 21, 31 includes a plurality of turns 95, with each turn beingseparated from a prior and/or subsequent turn by a space 97. Theoutermost turn terminates in a connector 99, and the innermost turnterminates in an inner connector 101, which may be bridged to anotheroutside connector 103. While the antenna 21, 31 is shown to comprisemultiple turns, the antenna 21, 31 may be configured, if needed, havingonly a single turn.

While illustrated as individual blocks and/or components of the wirelesspower transmitter 20, one or more of the components of the wirelesspower transmitter 20 may combined and/or integrated with one another asan integrated circuit (IC), a system-on-a-chip (SoC), among othercontemplated integrated components. Further, any operations, components,and/or functions discussed with respect to the power transmitter 20and/or components thereof may be functionally embodied by hardware,software, and/or firmware of the power transmitter 20.

Similarly, while illustrated as individual blocks and/or components ofthe power receiver 30, one or more of the components of the powerreceiver 30 may combined and/or integrated with one another as an IC, aSoC, among other contemplated integrated components. To that end, one ormore of the components of the power receiver 30 and/or any combinationsthereof may be combined as integrated components for one or more of thepower receiver 30 and/or components thereof. Further, any operations,components, and/or functions discussed with respect to the powerreceiver 30 and/or components thereof may be functionally embodied byhardware, software, and/or firmware of the power receiver 30.

The systems, methods, and apparatus disclosed herein are designed tooperate in an efficient, stable and reliable manner to satisfy a varietyof operating and environmental conditions. The systems, methods, and/orapparatus disclosed herein are designed to operate over a wide range ofthermal and mechanical stress environments so that data and/orelectrical energy is transmitted efficiently and with minimal loss. Inaddition, the system 10 may be designed with a small form factor using afabrication technology that allows for scalability, and at a cost thatis amenable to developers and adopters. In addition, the systems,methods, and apparatus disclosed herein may be designed to operate overa wide range of frequencies to meet the requirements of a wide range ofapplications.

In an embodiment, a ferrite shield may be incorporated within theantenna structure to improve antenna performance. Selection of theferrite shield material may be dependent on the operating frequency asthe complex magnetic permeability (μ=μ′−j*μ″) is frequency dependent.The material may be a polymer, a sintered flexible ferrite sheet, arigid shield, or a hybrid shield, wherein the hybrid shield comprises arigid portion and a flexible portion. Additionally, the magnetic shieldmay be composed of varying material compositions. Examples of materialsmay include, but are not limited to, zinc comprising ferrite materialssuch as manganese-zinc, nickel-zinc, copper-zinc, magnesium-zinc, andcombinations thereof.

As used herein, the phrase “at least one of” preceding a series ofitems, with the term “and” or “or” to separate any of the items,modifies the list as a whole, rather than each member of the list (i.e.,each item). The phrase “at least one of” does not require selection ofat least one of each item listed; rather, the phrase allows a meaningthat includes at least one of any one of the items, and/or at least oneof any combination of the items, and/or at least one of each of theitems. By way of example, the phrases “at least one of A, B, and C” or“at least one of A, B, or C” each refer to only A, only B, or only C;any combination of A, B, and C; and/or at least one of each of A, B, andC.

The predicate words “configured to”, “operable to”, and “programmed to”do not imply any particular tangible or intangible modification of asubject, but, rather, are intended to be used interchangeably. In one ormore embodiments, a processor configured to monitor and control anoperation or a component may also mean the processor being programmed tomonitor and control the operation or the processor being operable tomonitor and control the operation. Likewise, a processor configured toexecute code can be construed as a processor programmed to execute codeor operable to execute code.

A phrase such as “an aspect” does not imply that such aspect isessential to the subject technology or that such aspect applies to allconfigurations of the subject technology. A disclosure relating to anaspect may apply to all configurations, or one or more configurations.An aspect may provide one or more examples of the disclosure. A phrasesuch as an “aspect” may refer to one or more aspects and vice versa. Aphrase such as an “embodiment” does not imply that such embodiment isessential to the subject technology or that such embodiment applies toall configurations of the subject technology. A disclosure relating toan embodiment may apply to all embodiments, or one or more embodiments.An embodiment may provide one or more examples of the disclosure. Aphrase such an “embodiment” may refer to one or more embodiments andvice versa. A phrase such as a “configuration” does not imply that suchconfiguration is essential to the subject technology or that suchconfiguration applies to all configurations of the subject technology. Adisclosure relating to a configuration may apply to all configurations,or one or more configurations. A configuration may provide one or moreexamples of the disclosure. A phrase such as a “configuration” may referto one or more configurations and vice versa.

The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example,instance, or illustration.” Any embodiment described herein as“exemplary” or as an “example” is not necessarily to be construed aspreferred or advantageous over other embodiments. Furthermore, to theextent that the term “include,” “have,” or the like is used in thedescription or the claims, such term is intended to be inclusive in amanner similar to the term “comprise” as “comprise” is interpreted whenemployed as a transitional word in a claim. Furthermore, to the extentthat the term “include,” “have,” or the like is used in the descriptionor the claims, such term is intended to be inclusive in a manner similarto the term “comprise” as “comprise” is interpreted when employed as atransitional word in a claim.

All structural and functional equivalents to the elements of the variousaspects described throughout this disclosure that are known or latercome to be known to those of ordinary skill in the art are expresslyincorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed bythe claims. Moreover, nothing disclosed herein is intended to bededicated to the public regardless of whether such disclosure isexplicitly recited in the claims. No claim element is to be construedunder the provisions of 35 U.S.C. § 112, sixth paragraph, unless theelement is expressly recited using the phrase “means for” or, in thecase of a method claim, the element is recited using the phrase “stepfor.”

Reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean “one andonly one” unless specifically so stated, but rather “one or more.”Unless specifically stated otherwise, the term “some” refers to one ormore. Pronouns in the masculine (e.g., his) include the feminine andneuter gender (e.g., her and its) and vice versa. Headings andsubheadings, if any, are used for convenience only and do not limit thesubject disclosure.

While this specification contains many specifics, these should not beconstrued as limitations on the scope of what may be claimed, but ratheras descriptions of particular implementations of the subject matter.Certain features that are described in this specification in the contextof separate embodiments can also be implemented in combination in asingle embodiment. Conversely, various features that are described inthe context of a single embodiment can also be implemented in multipleembodiments separately or in any suitable sub-combination. Moreover,although features may be described above as acting in certaincombinations and even initially claimed as such, one or more featuresfrom a claimed combination can in some cases be excised from thecombination, and the claimed combination may be directed to a subcombination or variation of a sub combination.

1. A wireless power transfer system comprising: a wireless transmissionsystem, the wireless transmission system having: an input to receiveinput power from an input power source; a transmission antennaconfigured to couple with a receiver antenna associated with a wirelessreceiver system in a peripheral device; an integrated circuit including:a transmission controller configured to: generate AC wireless signalsbased, at least in part, on the input power, the AC wireless signalsincluding wireless power signals and wireless data signals, transmit theAC wireless signals to the receiver antenna via the transmissionantenna, derive a coupling factor for the transmission based on couplingdata sent from the wireless receiver system to the wireless transmissionsystem, generate an update frequency based on the derived couplingfactor, and to transmit the update frequency to the wireless receiversystem in the peripheral device, whereby the peripheral device providescoupling data to the wireless transmission system based on the updatefrequency; and a demodulation circuit configured to receivecommunications signals from the wireless receiver system and decode thecommunications signals by determining a rate of change in electricalcharacteristics of the communications signals.
 2. The wireless powertransfer system of claim 1, wherein the peripheral device includes oneor more of a computer input device, a mouse, a keyboard, a tabletcomputer, a mobile device, an audio device, a headset, headphones,earbuds, a remote control, a recording device, a conference telephonicdevice, a microphone, a gaming controller, a camera, a stylus,electronic eyewear, or combinations thereof.
 3. The wireless powertransfer system of claim 1, wherein the wireless transmission system isconfigured to provide electrical power to a load of the peripheraldevice that is configured to store electrical energy.
 4. The wirelesspower transfer system of claim 1, wherein the transmission controller isfurther configured to provide driving signals for driving thetransmission antenna, the wireless power transfer system furthercomprising: a power conditioning system configured to receive thedriving signals and generate the AC wireless signals based, at least inpart, on the driving signals.
 5. The wireless power transfer system ofclaim 1, wherein the transmission antenna is configured to operate basedon an operating frequency of about 6.78 MHz.
 6. The wireless powertransfer system of claim 1, wherein the transmission controller isconfigured to generate the update frequency based on the derivedcoupling factor by mapping the derived coupling factor to the updatefrequency based on a predetermined map.
 7. A method of wireless powertransfer between a wireless transmission system having a transmissionantenna and an integrated circuit including a transmission controllerand a demodulation circuit, and a peripheral device with a wirelessreceiver system having a receiving antenna, the method comprising:generating AC wireless signals including wireless power signals andwireless data signals by the transmission controller; transmitting theAC wireless signals to the receiver antenna via the transmission antennato provide power and data to the peripheral device; receiving couplingdata at the wireless transmission system from the wireless receiversystem via the transmission antenna and the receiving antenna; derivinga coupling factor based on the coupling data by the transmissioncontroller; generating an update frequency based on the derived couplingfactor by the transmission controller; and transmitting the updatefrequency from the wireless transmission system to the wireless receiversystem via the transmission antenna and the receiving antenna, wherebythe peripheral device provides coupling data to the wirelesstransmission system based on the update frequency.
 8. The method ofclaim 7 further comprising: receiving communications signals from thewireless receiver system by the demodulation circuit; and decoding thecommunications signals by the demodulation circuit by determining a rateof change in electrical characteristics of the communications signals.9. The method of claim 7, wherein the peripheral device includes one ormore of a computer input device, a mouse, a keyboard, a tablet computer,a mobile device, an audio device, a headset, headphones, earbuds, aremote control, a recording device, a conference telephonic device, amicrophone, a gaming controller, a camera, a stylus, electronic eyewear,or combinations thereof.
 10. The method of claim 7, wherein the ACwireless signals provide electrical power to a load of the peripheraldevice that is configured to store electrical energy.
 11. The method ofclaim 7, wherein generating AC wireless signals including wireless powersignals and wireless data signals further comprises generating drivingsignals for driving the transmission antenna, and conditioning thedriving signals to generate the AC wireless signals based, at least inpart, on the driving signals.
 12. The method of claim 7, whereingenerating AC wireless signals including wireless power signals andwireless data signals further comprises encoding the wireless datasignals in the AC wireless signals as modulations in the AC wirelesssignals.
 13. The method of claim 7, wherein the transmission antenna isconfigured to operate based on an operating frequency of about 6.78 MHz.14. The method of claim 7, wherein generating an update frequency basedon the derived coupling factor further comprises mapping the derivedcoupling factor to the update frequency based on a predetermined map.15. A wireless power transfer system comprising: a wireless receiversystem in a peripheral device, the wireless receiver system beingconfigured to wirelessly transmit first data signals via inductivecoupling, the first data signals including coupling data associated withthe inductive coupling, and the first data signals being transmitted ata requested frequency; a wireless transmission system in a surfacesupporting the peripheral device, the wireless transmission systemcomprising an integrated circuit including a transmission controller anda demodulation circuit, the wireless transmission system beingconfigured to receive the first data signals including coupling dataassociated with the inductive coupling and transmit power and seconddata signals to the wireless receiver system via the inductive coupling,the transmission controller configured to derive a coupling factorassociated with the inductive coupling based on the first data signals,generate an update frequency based on the derived coupling factor, andtransmit the update frequency to the wireless receiver system to modifythe requested frequency, the demodulation circuit configured to receivecommunications signals from the wireless receiver system and decode thecommunications signals by determining a rate of change in electricalcharacteristics of the communications signals.
 16. The wireless powertransfer system of claim 15, wherein the wireless receiver system isconfigured to use the transmitted power to either directly power theperipheral device or provide power to an electrical energy storagedevice of the peripheral device.
 17. The wireless power transfer systemof claim 15, wherein the wireless transmission system is configured tooperate at an operating frequency of about 6.78 MHz.
 18. The wirelesspower transfer system of claim 15, wherein the wireless transmissionsystem is configured to generate the update frequency based on thederived coupling factor by mapping the derived coupling factor to theupdate frequency based on a predetermined map.